OBG talks to Waleed Abdulkareem Elkhereiji, Director-General, Grain Silos & Flour Mills Organisation

Interview: Waleed Abdulkareem Elkhereiji

What challenges and opportunities is the industry facing as the Kingdom seeks to increase its wheat storage capacity from six months to one year?

WALEED ABDULKAREEM ELKHEREIJI: Currently, Saudi Arabia posses a storage capacity of 2.5m tonnes of wheat, which is enough to meet consumption for another 10 months. Through the addition of new silos, the total storage capacity in the Kingdom will reach 3.2m tonnes, which is enough to meet consumption for one year. In light of our experience so far, we do not anticipate any challenges to arise in implementing projects to expand storage capacity. The implementation of expansion projects will provide an opportunity to stabilise grain prices and create a cushion for abnormal developments in the industry.

If the sector successfully transitions to less water-intensive crops, how important will improved irrigation efficiency continue to be?

ELKHEREIJI: Even after the transition to less water-intensive crops, the importance of improved irrigation efficiency will not diminish. This is because the Kingdom faces a chronic and significant water shortage. Furthermore, it is important to use water economically and efficiently in every field, including irrigation. To this end, the government has mandated that the Agriculture Development Fund (ADF) implement a water rationalisation incentive programme. The government is also working to institute a scheme in coordination with other ministries to improve irrigation efficiency.

What needs to be done to supply feed to livestock farmers while also reducing alfalfa cultivation?

ELKHEREIJI: Apart from achieving targets to reduce alfalfa cultivation, the government is taking care of livestock farmers by providing them with compound feed and imported alfalfa. The national food security plan, which covers the feed industry, aims to increase the subsidies for raw materials used to produce compound feed. This should increase reliability on compound feed and reduce dependence on barley and alfalfa, which are limited on the global market and have lower nutritional values than compound feed. The launch of the King Abdullah’s Initiative for Saudi Agriculture Investment Abroad, in 2008, encourages investors to form partnerships with countries capable of developing agricultural investment incentives. The initiative targets production rice, wheat, feed barley, yellow corn, soybean meal, oil seeds, sugar and meat.

How will technological advancements contribute to the development of the agriculture sector?

ELKHEREIJI: As a member of the G20, Saudi Arabia is implementing policy options to reduce food price volatility by improving market information, transparency and policy response. G20 governments are instructing statistical and other relevant agencies to provide timely and accurate data on food production, consumption and stocks. Where the institutions and mechanisms are not in place nationally to do so, G20 governments should undertake to create them.

As per the G20 decision, the proposed Agricultural Market Information System will provide a mechanism for early warning through the comprehensive coverage of major food markets and the close monitoring of prices, in combination with food security assessments across vulnerable countries.

How can the skills of the local workforce be better matched to the needs of businesses?

ELKHEREIJI: Qualified and experienced technicians are hard to find, so we need to prioritise training. To this end, a special programme needs to be implemented by the tripartite partners – government, employers and labour. The objectives should be: to cut costs and save jobs by helping the employer manage excess manpower and reduce retrenchment; to help local workers in upgrading their skills and transition to new jobs; and to build capabilities for recovery, which will involve strengthening the skills of our labour force to position workers to take advantage of economic recovery.